Partners in Advocacy Program NJAMHAA’s Partners in Advocacy Program
Partners in Advocacy Overview Government Structure NJAMHAA 2018 Priorities Resources How You Can Participate Questions
Legislature and Executive Branch 40 State Legislative Districts: 40 Senators (1 per District) 80 Assemblymembers (2 per District) Power Structure: Leadership Committee Chairs
Key Leadership Senate: Assembly: Senate President Senate Majority Leader Chairs of Key Committees Assembly: Speaker of the Assembly Assembly Majority Leader
Key Committees Senate: Budget and Appropriations Community and Urban Affairs Education Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Law and Public Safety
Key Committees Assembly: Appropriations Budget Health and Senior Services Human Services Law and Public Safety Regulated Professions Women and Children
Administration Administration: Oversees 22 State Departments, many with their own Divisions and Agencies Key Departments: Human Services Health Children and Families Banking and Insurance Community Affairs Treasury Law and Public Safety
Administration Key Divisions: Mental Health and Addiction Services Medical Assistance and Health Services (Medicaid) Children’s System of Care Developmental Disabilities
New Jersey Budget Cycle Fiscal Year of July 1st through June 30th Time when everything is considered: Programs Subsidies Taxes etc. Governor Initiates/Has Advantage Line Item Veto Authority Must be Balanced Fiscal Budgets can be re-opened during the year making budget advocacy a constant process
New Jersey Budget Cycle Key Points in the Budget Cycle: State of the State Address Budget Address Governor’s Proposed Budget Public Legislative Budget Hearings Departmental Budget Hearings Assembly and Senate Budget Bills Governor’s Vetoes Veto Overrides
Priorities 2018 Rates: FFS Safety Net Funding FFS Oversight Board: Review of All Rates for Adequacy Add Children’s Rates to Study Inflationary Factor for All Medicaid Rates FFS Safety Net Funding Funding for Bricks and Mortar Pass Screening and EISS Expansion Bills Mechanism for Fiscal Impact Analysis of Legislation and Regulations Parity Enforcement
Resources NJAMHAA website: www.njamhaa.org Advocacy: Advocacy Resources Current Advocacy/Issues Legislation (including State Budget) Partners in Advocacy NJAMHAA in the News: News Stories Op-eds Letters to the Editor Press Releases New Jersey Legislature website: www.njleg.org for district, addresses, calendars, Committee assignments, etc.
NJAMHAA Website
Website: Advocacy Resources
NJ Legislature: Find Your Legislator Page
Website: Legislation Page
Legislative Outreach Responding to NJAMHAA Alerts Impact Emails/Calls/Meetings Calling is easy! Meetings Who to Bring NJAMHAA Resources Follow Up With: Legislators NJAMHAA
Partners in Advocacy All it requires is a commitment to responding to alerts and building relationships with elected officials Submitting testimony, written or in person Now organized by legislative district - many are empty!
Questions?